Reload 380 acp with 9mm dies?

[thx997303]

Well, I was a little bored and wondered if I could load 380 acp using 9mm dies.

So, since I don't have 380 acp dies, and I do have 9mm dies, I tested it.

First I found a few pieces of 380 acp fired through my Ruger LCP.

PPU headstamp.

I measured the neck's OD at .377" and the ID at .358"

I then took one of the cases and adjust the 9mm sizing die down till it touches the shell holder at the top of ram travel.

I then ran the first case through.

The die set deprimed the case, and visibly sized the neck portion of the case.

I measured the sized and deprimed cases neck diameter at .375" OD and the ID was .356"

Sounds pretty good to me so far.

I smoked the second case to see how far down the case the 9mm dies sized.

The following picture is the result.

http://i312.photobucket.com/albums/ll331/thx997303/100_3117.jpg

As you can see, the case was effectively neck sized. Plenty of sizing for proper boolit pull.

I then sized about 50 mixed headstamp pieces of 380 acp brass the same as above, and using the barrel from my Ruger LCP as a case gauge, I checked for chambering issues.

Every single piece of brass dropped into the chamber without persuasion, and subsequently fell out of the chamber with only their own weight.

Good so far.

Next I attempted to run the 380 brass into the expander die for 9mm.

This was a no go. The 380 brass is too short for the lee powder through expander die.

Not being satisfied with this, I decided to see if I could make it work.

I placed a 350 gr Ranch dog boolit that I shoot in my 45-70 on top of the expander plug, and screwed the top part back onto the die.

This photo shows what I did above.

http://i312.photobucket.com/albums/ll331/thx997303/100_3119.jpg

The above process left the expander plug sticking out the bottom of the die.

http://i312.photobucket.com/albums/ll331/thx997303/100_3121.jpg

If I were looking for top accuracy, and was shooting these rounds out of something other than a tiny little Ruger LCP, I may worry about concentricity issues, but as it is, I'm not concerned.

Now, by merely adjusting the die until you get the desired flare, you can flare the 380 cases with the 9mm expander die.

I adjusted the flare on the cases to accept the base of a .360" boolit without issue

On to seating the boolit.

I'm using a Lee 105 gr Round nose boolit, that is .360" in diameter.

I first adjusted seating depth with the body of the die backed out, and had no trouble doing so, then I adjusted the crimp with the seating stem backed out.

This went as normal. No special adjustments were made.

I ended up with a dummy round with an OAL of .925"

http://i312.photobucket.com/albums/ll331/thx997303/100_3126.jpg

The round fit in the magazine just fine.

http://i312.photobucket.com/albums/ll331/thx997303/100_3124.jpg

I then attempted to chamber them from the magazine with the LCP.

The round chambered without issue.

I then chambered the round an additional 10 times from the magazine, and noted the OAL after each chambering.

The OAL did not shorten at all.

So, it appears that 380 acp can be successfully loaded using my LEE 9mm dies, for use in my Ruger LCP.

In the next little while, I will be loading some test rounds using both Unique and Titegroup.

After working up an accurate load, (crossing fingers) that doesn't lead the barrel, I will then proceed to load and fire the same 20 pieces of brass neck sizing only.

I will be sure to report any chambering issues, IF they develop.

[Bwana]

I have the Lee 380 die set and it works fine;but, I stack washers in my lee expander dies to take up the slack and I use a RCBS 9mm die to seat the bullets as the .358" cast bullets won't fit the 380 seater die. Works great.
I have loaded and fired 3.0gr of TG with that weight cast bullet and found 2.5gr to be a bit better. Also you will find that the "smiley" bullet nose mark that LCPs are famous for may chip off some particles of lead and get in the chamber preventing full chambering. I don't know why they didn't make the magazine opening higher up.

[thx997303]

Haven't noticed any odd marks on the boolit from chambering, but I'll keep a lookout.

[Doby45]

Let usknow your recipe when you get it tested out.. I am loading the exact same boolit in 380 and have not really started testing yet.

[lead-1]

Great idea to be stored in the back of my mind, nothing like making one thing work for another. I made a spacer to use my .308 crimp die for .30-06.

[bob208]

it worked for you. but for a semi. the case should be sized full lengh.for range work that is ok but for defense it would not. now you can buy just the sizing die and use the other dies for seating. that is what i did for .38 s-w.

[Bret4207]

Necessity being the mother of invention, I've "made do" a few times myself. Good on you THX!

[DIRT Farmer]

I loaded my 380 with 9mm RCBS dies that I had messed with, When it diden't work out I bought a set of 380 dies,still dident work. the the PPK slide would stop before fully chambering. I found the problem when given some bullets sized 356, I had been sizing 358. The case would drop in the barrel, but functioning through the gun would bobble part of the time. I guess the dies worked, but I was told the German guns were very tight.

[thx997303]

it worked for you. but for a semi. the case should be sized full lengh.for range work that is ok but for defense it would not. now you can buy just the sizing die and use the other dies for seating. that is what i did for .38 s-w.

I don't have a proper boolit for defense in that 380 at this point anyway.

Will need a mold for it. Can't wait for ranch dog to get his 380 flat point mold in stock, and hope I have the money at the same time. :?

At that point, I will probably at least buy a 380 sizer die.

But for now, and for working up loads, this works. :mrgreen:

[2wheelDuke]

I've been casting that boolit for my P3AT. I did buy a Lee .380 die set though. I'm running 2.5gr of Bullseye behind that boolit with pretty good results in the P3AT. I only fired out to 15 yards, but at that range, the point of impact was the same as factory rounds, and I seem to have been shooting slightly better groups with my loads. I sized mine to .357 in a Lyman 450, and I don't recall the exact OAL but it's within the spec sheet.

[MakeMineA10mm]

Yep, as you know, the 9 is a tapered case, while the 380 is straight-walled. I wonder if 38 Super or 223 dies would give you full-length sizing?

I load 3.0grs of W231 with that bullet (Lee calls them 102gr, but mine weigh 105gr also), and that's a pretty warm load. (I won't go any higher.) I'd start with Unique at that load and work up carefully. As with all small-capacity cases, pressures can go up quickly, so go in very small increments.

[Ranch Dog]

I don't have a proper boolit for defense in that 380 at this point anyway.

Will need a mold for it. Can't wait for ranch dog to get his 380 flat point mold in stock, and hope I have the money at the same time. :?

At that point, I will probably at least by a 380 sizer die.

But for now, and for working up loads, this works. :mrgreen:

That TL358-100-RF (http://www.ranchdogoutdoors.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_6_24&products_id=20) is in stock! Call me old school but I just use a set of 380 dies. I did buy a bullet seating die body to use as a crimp die as I do not like the carbide sizing ring in the FCD for cast bullet use.

[exile]

I had a discussion with a guy in the gunshop the other day who wanted to know if he could load .380 using a 9mm die set. I told him no, due to the expander die problems. I stand corrected!

exile

[HollowPoint]

This always seems to happen to me..

I recently bought a little 380 keltec. Since I already had a set of 9mm dies I wondered the same thing.

I did a quick informal google search to find out if I could load 380 using my 9mm dies. Of course, from a purely technical stand point the answer is NO but, from the point of view of a chronic do-it-yourselfer and tight-wad like myself the answer now appears to be YES.

I ended up buying a new set of Lee 380 dies. It simplifies things but now I see that I didn't necessarily have to spend that money.

Incidentally, I too am reloading with the Lee 105 round nose mold. For me it seems to be dropping bullets at 108 grains and .360 diameter.

In an effort to get them closer to the stated grain weight, I installed a Cramer hollow pointing setup on one of the cavities and that got me down to 100 grains. I just resize down to .356 and I'm good to go.

I wish I'd read this info before spending more money on reloading dies. Oh well, such is life.

Now I'm looking for some safe and accurate reloading data for this combination. I'll keep tabs on this thread in hopes of getting a clue on what works in these small guns.

HollowPoint

[thx997303]

That TL358-100-RF (http://www.ranchdogoutdoors.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_6_24&products_id=20) is in stock! Call me old school but I just use a set of 380 dies. I did buy a bullet seating die body to use as a crimp die as I do not like the carbide sizing ring in the FCD for cast bullet use.

Now look what you did.

I see a new mold in my future. :cbpour:

The reason I did this is because, I wanted to load and shoot my 380, but didn't have the dies, or money for them.

Well, that's not as big an issue anymore, so I'll likely buy myself a set of dies.

[Depreacher]

For some reason my Lyman 310/9mm tool didn't size the .380 brass down enough. running the brass through my RCBS .223 FL die made it just right. :smile:

[rintinglen]

I reloaded 1100 380's using a Lyman .357 carbide sizer die, an RCBS 9mm Seater die, and a no-name 38 Special expander die that I ground down until I could flair the cases enough to start a 358-242 95 grain boolit. I used the .223 shellholder on my trusty Dillon 450 and all went well. Necessity is a mother sometimes.

[thx997303]

Okay, finally got around to loading some test rounds for the 380 acp today.

I decided that since I have nothing else that I use titegroup in, and since I have some of that powder available, that I would try it in the 380 acp.

I started at 2.5 gr TG and went up in .1 gr increments to 3 gr.

Seems 3.2 is the book max, so I should be alright, but you know how that goes.

I hope to be testing these within the next week or so.

And dang it Ranch Dog, you roped me into the 135 gr 9mm mold before I could buy the 100 gr mold.

[wbwizzard]

I was also unable to find a 380 die set last year, and refuse to buy factory ammo, so I had to improvise. The 223 Rem will size the 380 correctly, just remember to case lube if you are use to a carbide die. Same shell holder also. Expand with Lyman M die and seat with 9mm.

[Cherokee]

I have use my old CH carbide 223 sizing die for sizing my 380 brass for 20+ years. Sizes real close to the extractor cut to get rid of any bulge.

[EMC45]

I used my RCBS .223 dies to reload .380 for my KelTec years back than I finally got some RCBS Carbide dies in .380 from the board here. Sold my KelTec, then sold my dies to MGD45, and sold all my brass (about 1000 pcs. on the board here) Swore I wouldn't own another .380 again.....Well found an Astra Constable cheap and had to get more brass! I went back to using my .223 dies to size. I flare with my universal flare die I believe, then I seat with an old .38 Special seater then crimp with a Lee .357 crimp die. A lot of steps.....Makes some fine .380 ammo though. And the shellholde for the .223 is correct for the .380 as well.

[NavyVet1959]

I ended up with quite a bit of range pick-up .380 brass when I was in the Las Vegas area recently shooting at an area to the NW of the city. There was a guy there who was shooting with his young son and he was shooting a 9mm and his young son was shooting a .380 -- Glocks, I believe. I was shooting near them and after they left, there was a lot of nice shiny brass on the ground. Since you're *supposed* to clean up after yourself, I did the responsible thing and cleaned up the bright new brass that they left. :)

I just picked up everything that was shiny and figured I would find a use for it eventually. So, there's quite a bit of .380 in there. I don't own a .380, but I'm thinking that it could be resized in the 9x19 dies, loaded long, and shot as light 9x19 loads with it basically headspacing on the extractor. I'm thinking around 3.0gr of Red Dot behind a Lee 358-105-SWC cast bullet to start off with. Might have to switch to the 124 gr TC profile since some of my 9x19 handguns don't like to feed the Lee SWC.

[P Flados]

I have loaded 380 with different dies sets on a number of occasions.

For loading J-words, sizing with a 38/357 sizer works pretty good.

For cast above around 0.358", a 9mm sizer alone should work fine.

Using the Lee 105 RN, and the Lee 9mm expander, my most recent batch had too much "bulge" mid case to chamber smoothly. I found that running the loaded cases through a 357 carbide sizer die removed the bulge nicely. I pulled a boolit from a loaded round and found the sizing down of the boolit was not excessive (I do not remember exact details).